MEDIA ADVISORY
Friends of the Earth International
vienna, austria
PROTESTS FOLLOW ASSAsSINATION OF
ECUADORIAN RIGHTS DEFENDER
November 10, 2003, Vienna (Austria) --
Activists plan to protest here today Monday
Nov. 10 at 5 pm outside the Ecuadorian
embassy to denounce the assassination of
Angel Shingre, a well-known campesino leader
and human rights defender killed in Ecuador
last week.
Friends of the Earth International wants
the Ecuadorian government to launch an
independent investigation into the
assassination. The demonstration was
organised by Friends of the Earth Austria
(GLOBAL 2000) on behalf of Friends of the
Earth International (FoEI), the world's
largest grassroots environmental federation.
Some of the 68 FoEI national groups around
the globe announced they also intend to
organise protests outside Ecuadorian
embassies in their countries.
Friends of the Earth Austria staff were
working since June 2003 with Angel Shingre
against the plans of the Austrian
transnational corporation OMV to get involved
in Ecuadorian oil business.
Angel Shingre, 47 years old, was
outstanding in his dedication to helping
small farmers and indigenous communities. For
more than 20 years, he worked tirelessly to
promote environmental rights and defend
affected communities in the face of abuses by
oil companies and a culture of impunity in
the region.
At the time of his murder, he served as
Coordinator of the Office of Environmental
Law in Orellana Province (Ecuador).
During his final weeks, before the
cold-blooded assassination on the morning of
November 4 in the city of Coca (Orellana), he
helped and advised communities that are
affected by the oil field known as Pindo and
communities in the Shiripuno River area.They
are organizing to vindicate their rights
against Oil giant Chevron Texaco.
His assassination took place just few days
after the beginning (22.10.2003) of a major
lawsuit by 88 plaintiffs in the name of
30.000 rainforest inhabitants against Chevron
Texaco for damages the transnational
corporation allegedly caused in the Amazon
Rainforest since the 1970s. The lawsuit takes
place in Lago Agrio, 170 km north east of
Quito.
For more information contact
In Vienna:
Andreas Baur or Karl Schellmann (German or
English)
Tel : +43/1/812 57 30-18 o r +43/664/103 24
23 (mobile)
Email:
In Ecuador:
Office of Environmental Law
Coca, Ecuador
Telephones: +593/62/881633 or
+593/99/688937
Accion Ecologica
Quito Ecuador
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